The Politics of Biography in Africa

The Politics of Biography in Africa PDF

Author: Anaïs Angelo

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2021-08-31

Total Pages: 187

ISBN-13: 1000432688

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Bringing together historians, political scientists, and literary analysts, this volume shows how biographical narratives can shed light on alternative, little known or under-researched aspects of state power in African politics. Part 1 shows how biographical narratives breathe new life into subjects who, upon decolonization, had been reduced to silence - women, workers, and radical politicians. The contributors analyze the complex relationship between biographical narratives and power, questioning either the power of biographical codes peculiar to western, colonial origins, or the power to shape public memory. Part 2 reflects on the act of (auto-)biography writing as an exercise of power, one that blurs the lines between truth and invention. (Auto-)biographical narratives appear as politicized, ambiguous stories. Part 3 focuses on female leadership during and after colonization, exploring on how women gained, lost, or reinvented "power". Brought together, the contributions of this volume show that the function of biographical narratives should no longer oscillate between romanticized narratives and historical evidence; their varied formats all offer fruitful opportunities for a multidisciplinary dialogue. This book will be of interest to scholars from various disciplinary backgrounds working on the African postcolonial state, the decolonization process, women’s and gender studies, and biography writing.

Africa

Africa PDF

Author: John Reader

Publisher: Penguin UK

Published: 1998-11-05

Total Pages: 816

ISBN-13: 0141926937

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Drawing on many years of African experience, John Reader has written a book of startling grandeur and scope that recreates the great panorama of African history, from the primeval cataclysms that formed the continent to the political upheavals facing much of the continent today. Reader tells the extraordinary story of humankind's adaptation to the ferocious obstacles of forest, river and desert, and to the threat of debilitating parasites, bacteria and viruses unmatched elsewhere in the world. He also shows how the world's richest assortment of animals and plants has helped - or hindered - human progress in Africa.

Burundi

Burundi PDF

Author: Nigel Watt

Publisher: C Hurst

Published: 2008

Total Pages: 268

ISBN-13:

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Little known in the English-speaking world, Burundi is Rwanda's twin, a small Central African country with a complex history of ethnic tension between its Hutu and Tutsi populations that has itself experienced traumatic events, including mass killings of over 200,000 people. The country remained in a state of simmering civil war until 2004, after which Julius Nyerere and Nelson Mandela took turns as mediators in a lengthy, and eventually successful, peace process which has endowed Burundi with new institutions, including a new constitution, that led to the election of a majority Hutu government in 2005. But there are many problems still to solve apart from ethnic tensions, above all the entrenched poverty of most Burundians, which has seen it designated by NGOs as one of the most deprived countries on earth. Nigel Watt's book discusses the troubled political fortunes of this beautiful, yet disturbed country in the heart of Central Africa. He traces the origins of its political crises, sheds light on Burundi's recent history by means of interviews with leading participants and those whose lives have been affected by horrific events, and helps demystify the country's ethnic divisions.

Mandela

Mandela PDF

Author: Tom Lodge

Publisher: Oxford University Press

Published: 2007

Total Pages: 303

ISBN-13: 0199219354

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Offering insights about the shaping of Mandela's personality and public persona, from his childhood days and early activism, through his long years of imprisonment, to his presidency of the new South Africa, this book emphasises the crucial interplay between Mandela's public career and his personal or private world.

Public Intellectuals and the Politics of Global Africa

Public Intellectuals and the Politics of Global Africa PDF

Author: Seifudein Adem

Publisher: Adonis & Abbey Publishers Ltd

Published:

Total Pages: 367

ISBN-13: 1912234858

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Ali Mazrui has been described as one of the most original thinkers that Africa has produced, and one of the top 100 living public intellectuals in the world today. This volume uses Mazrui's life and work as a guide towards explaining the historical impact of black public intellectuals such as Julius K. Nyerere, Patrice Lumumba and Barrack Obama. The book explores not only politics and academics, but also religion, gender, class and civil-military relations, bringing together into the black experience both Plato's concept of the "e;philosopher King"e; and V.I. Lenin's notion of the 'intelligentsia'

Political Leaders in Black Africa

Political Leaders in Black Africa PDF

Author: John A. Wiseman

Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing

Published: 1991

Total Pages: 280

ISBN-13:

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This major reference work is the first to provide authoritative biographies of 485 politicians who have shaped the development of Africa in the period since independence. It offers a comprehensive coverage of all states south of the Sahara including Namibia and South Africa. Drawing on 20 years experience as a teacher and researcher in African affairs, John Wiseman presents short biographical essays which present not only the facts but also an assessment of the importance of the individual concerned. He successfully covers the life and work of politicians representing diverse currents of thought and different political traditions. Many of the entries provide information available in English for the first time. This unique book will be an essential reference work for a wide range of readers: academic specialists, students, politicians, journalists and business organizations with connections in Africa.

Obote

Obote PDF

Author: Kenneth Ingham

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2013-04-15

Total Pages: 245

ISBN-13: 1135082723

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Uganda developed as a British protectorate in a manner which made it virtually impossible for any indigenous politician to emerge as the unchallenged leader of his country. Obote: A Political Biography describes the efforts of one man to find a pragmatic solution to that problem, and in doing so to create a united, democratic Uganda. Kenneth Ingham makes the first attempt to trace the political career of Obote through the ups and downs of his two presidencies and his time in exile during the military dictatorship of Idi Amin. The book challenges accusations of tyranny and argues that Obote's political achievements have been underestimated. It addresses the key issue of why a country so well endowed with human and material resources should have suffered so grievously from shortages and internal strife. Obote's contribution emerges as unique and at the same time representative of the problems facing the leaders of Africa's emergent nations.

Obote

Obote PDF

Author: Kenneth Ingham

Publisher: Psychology Press

Published: 1994

Total Pages: 254

ISBN-13: 9780415053426

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Traces the political career of twice-president Obote before and after Amin's dictatorship, arguing that his achievements in Uganda have been underestimated.

Frantz Fanon

Frantz Fanon PDF

Author: Leo Zeilig

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

Published: 2021-03-25

Total Pages: 304

ISBN-13: 0755638239

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Frantz Fanon was one of the twentieth-century's most influential theorists and activists, whose work fighting against colonialism and imperialism has been an inspiration to today's decolonization and anti-racism movements. As the author of essential texts such as The Wretched of the Earth and Black Skin, White Masks, his impact on today's activists - from Rhodes Must Fall to Black Lives Matter - is indelible. Leo Zeilig here details the fascinating life of Fanon - from his upbringing in Martinique to his wartime experiences and work in Europe and North Africa - and frames his ideas and activism within the greater context of his career as a practising psychiatrist and his politically tumultuous surroundings. The book covers the period of the Algerian War of Independence, national liberation and what Fanon described as 'the curse of independence'. Highlighting Fanon's role as the most influential theorist of anti-colonialism and racial liberation, this book is an essential read for those interested in the roots of the modern day anti-racism and decolonization movements.

Albert René

Albert René PDF

Author: Kevin Shillington

Publisher: Apollo Books

Published: 2014

Total Pages: 362

ISBN-13: 9781742586120

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Albert Rene is a towering figure of modern Seychelle, an archipelago in the Indian Ocean, east of mainland Southeast Africa and northeast of the island of Madagascar. He arouses intense emotions in both admirers and opponents. This first full-length biography analyzes Rene's early years, his political awakening, and his struggle for full electoral support in the face of strong opposition. Frustrated by the slow pace of Seychelle's economic development and the extent of social division along racial lines, Albert Rene took the fateful decision to seize power by coup d'etat in 1977. It is a dramatic story, which includes an attempted invasion by South African mercenaries. In 1992-93, Rene finessed a change from a one-party socialist state to multi-party rule. He bequeathed to his successor a transformed nation that had shed its oppressive racial hierarchy and had attained the highest social and economic indicators within the African region. Underlying the political drama is the story of the compassion and romance of the all too human man that is Albert Rene. The book adds authority to this account by the depth of research through archives and contemporary newspapers, as well as extensive interviews covering both his political and personal life, the latter including interviews with all three of Albert Rene's wives. *** "A saga of political drama, struggle, and ultimately hope...fascinating from cover to cover, and highly recommended especially for public and college library biography collections." -- Midwest Book Review, Library Bookwatch, The Biography Shelf, October 2014 [Subject: Biography, Politics, History, African Studies]Ã?Â?Ã?Â?Ã?Â?Ã?Â?